


The Cop and the Fighter: The Case of the Unbridled Massacre

by wordscavenger



Series: The Cop and the Fighter [3]
Category: Rush Hour (TV 2016)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-03
Updated: 2018-02-03
Packaged: 2019-03-13 04:50:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13563189
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wordscavenger/pseuds/wordscavenger
Summary: As Lee and Carter continue to settle into the uncharted folds of their blossoming relationship, an unusual new case sucks them in with a bang. Peeling back layers that lead to a dark blight on the PRC’s past, repercussions arise in the form of a vengeance desired so desperately, little could survive blocking its path towards success. While Lee and Carter strive to fight this new wave of danger slipping into the streets of L.A., they must also battle unexpected challenges from their work, their home, and from the people closest to them.





	The Cop and the Fighter: The Case of the Unbridled Massacre

**Author's Note:**

> Hello again! I have another part of the series that I hope you all will enjoy! I have no clue when I will be able to update but I will try my best. Thank you for reading!

The smell of gunpowder filled the air, and for the first time in over a month it didn’t make Lee’s skin crawl.

“Check it out, Derrick. That one looks like a dragon.”

Lee turned to Gerald who had their friend’s ten year old son perched happily upon his shoulders, pointing towards the dark night sky as it would briefly become lit up by the illuminations intermittently exploding before their wide, excited eyes.

Lee emphasized with their enjoyment all too-well. His country was deservedly known for their impressive display of fireworks, and the fiery red and white sparks dancing in the air in concession to celebrate one of his country’s many national holidays did not disappoint.

“The dragon symbolizes good luck in my country,” Lee said to Derrick, who quickly looked down at him with wide eyes and a mouth full of a traditional Chinese treat: dragon’s beard candy. The sticky white mix of sugar, coconut, and other less than nutritious ingredients had barely lasted moments in his eager hands.

“To show it respect means you will be blessed with good fortune,” Lee continued.

“Like a good luck charm?” Derek asked after he swallowed down his treat like it was the last meal he would ever be able to enjoy. They both looked back up to the sky when another explosion echoed overhead, then Lee turned and watched the sparks highlighting the side of Derrick’s face a soft shade of red.

Before Lee could answer a voice piped up from beside him.

“You bet, bud. Like a Lucky Charms Leprechaun from the cereal your mom won’t let you eat,” Carter joked happily as he bumped shoulders with Lee, returning from the street vendor selling masks and LED light up sticks he had been pursuing. He was munching on his own bag of Dragon’s beard and seemed to be enjoying it just as much Derrick, but was savoring his bites with a little more patience.  

Carter turned to Lee, gave him a wink, and then held out his bag as an offering to share.

For a moment Lee’s brain stuttered to a complete stop and Chinatown’s Central Plaza in L.A. faded into the background as his mind zeroed in on Carter and his million-watt smile. Even though three weeks had passed since their disastrous run-in with a Russian assassin and the mystery of two missing ballerinas led to them fall into bed together, he still couldn’t get over the fact that they were now a couple.

Albeit a behind the scenes one.

Every day he woke up surprised, but happy, to either find Carter in bed with him or, on the nights they were apart, a loving or funny text message wishing him a good morning. That, coupled with his consistent struggle to not run his hands along Carter’s hair or tug him in for a kiss every time his lips ached for a touch, was a daily conflict he was happy to grind.

Initially, he had been worried that their relationship, personal and working, would change for the worse after getting together. Instead, he couldn’t help but feel that it was starting to make them stronger in ways he hadn’t expected.

Lee originally hadn’t planned on attending Golden Week, an annual weeklong celebration that included his home country’s national day; and he had skipped last year as well to focus on finding his sister. But, when Carter approached the subject on attending the festival, Lee realized he was being ambushed into reacquainting himself with his roots he had long been separated from.

“Look at it this way,” Carter had begun tentatively in his bed a few days ago after a long day at the precinct. Both were safely wrapped up in each other’s arms, sweat cooling on their skins from the thick night air after another fantastic round of love-making that felt like passion blossoming anew each time.

“I love that you’re staying in the States. Believe me. If you were about to hop on the next plane back to China I’d be in the passenger seat next to you. And, knowing my luck, in the middle seat so that I’d also be next to that one annoying passenger who thinks it’s fun to chat during seventeen-hour flights across land and sea.”

“I am not leaving,” Lee had promised for the hundredth time, running his hand up and down Carter’s arm to comfort him. “I swear to you.”

“I know. I believe you,” Carter said, though Lee hadn’t missed the slight hesitation in his eyes. It would take time, Lee knew, but he would prove it to Carter one day that he would not leave his side.

“What I’m saying is, since you’re going to stick around, I think it’s a good idea to, I guess, touch base with your community here.”

“My community?” Lee asked.

“Yeah. You’re not living in the middle of nowhere, Lee. You’ve got a whole population of Chinese people who could help you feel more, like, at home in your new home if you want.”

Lee shifted and remained silent, not sure how to answer that. He had ventured into Chinatown more than once, but never for long and hadn’t made any connections there. Between work and his friends he never felt the need to do more. But now that Carter had brought it up, it made him realize the man might have a valid point.

“I get that it’s a lot,” Carter had said. “And if you want me to butt out of this, I will. But, just hear me out first, okay? How ‘bout some baby steps? I looked online and there’s this Golden Week festival thing going on next week. Food, music, dancing; so you don’t actually have to interact with anyone there if you don’t want to. We’ll just hang out and enjoy ourselves. And, by we I mean you, me, Gerald, Didi.” He smiled and gave Lee’s elbow a small squeeze. “You know Derrick would get a big kick out of seeing all that stuff. He doesn’t get the chance to stuff his face full of sugar you buy off the street.”

Lee let out a soft laugh at the image of Derrick devouring all the treats he knew would be at the festival. Still not sure how he felt about going, Lee asked, “Why are you doing this?”

Carter opened his mouth to say something, but then seemed to hesitate and closed it. He shook his head before continuing, “Because in case you haven’t noticed, I care about your ass. I never really thought about it when you first moved here, but it can’t of been easy to suddenly have decided that you’re going to leave everything and everyone you’ve ever known and start over in an entirely new continent.” He averted his eyes to Lee’s chest and dragged a gentle hand up and down the solid muscles peppered with the love bites he had put there only minutes ago. “I guess, if it was me, I’d want there to be at least some things around to remind me of home. You know?”

As much as he hated to admit it, Lee couldn’t argue with that. Between his sister’s betrayal and his shifted relationship with his partner, the past year had been an unexpected whirlwind that upended his life in ways he could have never predicted. Now that things had settled into a new but comfortable sort of normal, he had to admit that there were times homesickness had made its presence known even more frequently than before.

His initial plan had always been to return home after finding his sister; living permanently in America hadn’t ever been on his radar. He could blame his change of plans on Kim; or that he had chosen to stay because of his time spent in America. But, he knew better, and sometimes he thinks Carter knows better as well.

Now that he was at the festival, despite himself, he was glad that Carter had talked him into coming. Conversations in his language sprinkled the air amongst a variety of spectators, and the parade of costumes and floats celebrated his homeland in their familiar colors as they danced between the neo-pagoda architecture under multicolored lanterns. Everywhere songs and slogans he had grown up with exploded in a chaotic celebration of his shared culture wherever they went.

Even though he hadn’t been home for almost a year, if felt like it had been decades. As he breathed in the smell of baked goods from down the plaza and hearing people yell cheerful salutations of _gon bui_ and _yam_ _sing_ to each other, he might as well have been walking down the Wan Chai district on his way home after a long shift at his old precinct.  

Lee brought his thoughts back to Carter waiting patiently in front of him, the piece of white cotton candy still in his hands. He gave Carter a small smile, then plucked the item up and popped it into his mouth.

“This stuff is too good,” Carter said and looked Lee up and down appreciatively. Lee didn’t miss the salacious glances Carter had been showering him all night. Despite his initial hesitations, Carter had convinced Lee to dress more casually for their outing. His outfit consisted of a dark black, skin-tight t-shirt to go with his navy jeans and black chucks he had borrowed from Carter. He had refused at first, but soon realized he was having a much harder time saying no to his partner. This could prove troublesome in the future.

Before Lee could do something stupid, like push Carter up against a wall to share his candy in a fun and different way, Didi walked up beside Carter and gave him a light, good-natured smack on the shoulder. “You know why I won’t let my baby eat that junk.” She munched happily on a simple ice cream cone before continuing. “Though I guess it’s not going to make much a difference since I’m sure that stuff,” she gestured to the food in his hand, “is probably just as bad.”

 “Please,” Carter said. “Hate to break it to you girl, but Gerald and I have given him way worse stuff than that on our boys nights.”

“Ah,” Didi moaned. “Don’t tell me things like that, Carter.” She looked up at Derrick, his mouth smeared with more sugar and coconut, most likely given to him by Gerald. “Papi. Don’t listen to Gerald or Carter ever again. Only Lee. He’s got a good head for being healthy. Got it?”

Lee smiled as he watched Carter and Didi continue to bicker. He was glad Carter had convinced him to come. It was good for him to be back around his culture. And, he had to admit, having the rest of his friends there made the experience that much better. They weren’t the only non-Chinese people at the festival, hordes of Angelinos and tourists were there enjoying themselves as well.

“Chengmahn. Neih sīkm̀hsīk góng gwóngdùngwá a?”

Lee stopped short when a Chinese woman gently stepped up next to him, asking him if he spoke Cantonese. She was middle-aged and another woman sharing her age stood beside her as well. They were dressed in casual slacks and jackets, and wore identical blue and white visors. Lee kept one eye on his friends who were unaware of his delay, but let them go ahead down the street towards more stalls and vendors.

“Shì. Wǒ zěnyàng néng bāng dào nǐ?” Lee nodded as he confirmed her question and offered his services. She held out a map and pointed to a circled destination marked Huntington Library. Lee knew they had a Chinese garden there and smiled as he understood what she was about to ask.  “Nǐ zhīdào ma-” She began, but Lee took the map and began explaining how to get there. When they understood his directions he accepted their gentle head bow in thanks, and wished them a good night as they walked away.

 After they left, he shoved his hands into his jean pockets and turned to catch up to his friends who had been swallowed up into the crowds. Before he took more than a few steps he suddenly noticed a telephone pole filled with a scattered arrangement of stickers, flyers and notices all in Mandarin. He gave it a casual glance before he began to move on, but then stopped when one of the notices caught his eye.

Carefully, he grabbed a Kermit green flyer and tugged it down, ripping the top a bit from where it had been stapled into the wood.

He had barely begun reading its contents when a strange noise in the distance grabbed his attention. It sounded like a car or a moped, but the central plaza was made for pedestrians only, so as he looked around for the source of the noise, it was hard to visualize what it could be with the throngs of people obstructing his view.

He turned and began heading towards where he thought Carter might be; it might be a good idea to grab him and see what was going on.

When the sound grew louder he frowned and looked around again. Then, in the near distance, he saw it. A small black canister flew through the air, trailing white smoke like a falling cloud, before it disappeared into the crowd.

Even though he expected it, he still jumped back in surprise as the sound of a loud explosion predicated a sudden, large puff of white smoke.

He shoved the flyer in his pocket and was already running towards where he last saw Carter and the others, now nowhere in sight as chaos quickly took over the peaceful festivities.

“Carter!” He yelled as the sound he had heard before became louder, and more familiar. He slid to a stop when he saw a motorcycle suddenly speed down a side street and come out into the pavilion. Its passenger was dressed all in black that matched the color of his full face helmet. His arm was already outstretched to huck another canister into the crowd that was growing in chaos. Through the haze of white smoke steadily growing thicker Lee could see three other cyclists coming into the plaza from opposite directions, their engines revving like monsters on the prowl.

A maelstrom of fear and panic grew fast and quick as the sickening realization set in that people were attacking the festival. One middle aged woman in a glittery costume fell beside his feet. He quickly helped her back up even as the smoke fell around them like a heavy fog.

“Go!” He coughed in Mandarin as he tugged her back to her feet. She didn’t even spare him a glance before she disappeared into the flow of people escaping the pavilion.

He quickly scanned the throngs of fleeing people and achingly knew he had to abandon his search for his lover. There had to be hundreds of people separating them and, as much as he wanted to find him, he knew Carter and Didi could take care of everyone and themselves. For now, the cop in him had to take over. Even if these people terrorizing everyone weren’t using weapons, yet, injuries weren’t uncommon when a crowd quickly becomes consumed by chaos. 

Changing tactics, Lee looked around for the first motorcyclist that he saw, and quickly spotted that his target had slowed down to a stop. Unaware of being watched, the figure leant his bike to the side as he reach into his knapsack, most likely digging around for another canister.

Luckily, his distraction became Lee’s advantage. Using all his strength, Lee barreled towards a park bench a few feet away from the motorcyclist, weaving and dodging people as they ran scared from the other assailants. Taking a half a moment to calculate the distance, he took a deep breath, then jumped on top of the back of the wooden bench before launching himself forwards.

The man never saw Lee coming, and didn’t know what was happening when a pair of arms suddenly wrapped around him like a vise, then toppled them both to the ground.

More accustomed to the art of falling, Lee rolled with the impact when he hit the hard cement. He still felt pain reverberate up his side, but quickly pushed that discomfort aside so he could focus on controlling the fall. He skidded to a stop on his knees, then turned and beside him he could distinctly hear the other man have a more difficult time recovering. His painful grunts and groans from having the wind knocked out of him were audible between the crowd’s shouts and pounding footfalls and the motorcycle’s engines growling in succession like a lion pacing for prey.

Then, unexpectedly, the man suddenly swore in perfect Mandarin.

Using an up kick, Lee landed back onto his feet and took in the fallen individual who was struggling to crawl onto his knees; his breathing labored and uneven. The helmet was hanging off his head at an awkward angle, and he when he whipped it off angrily a long and black bandana covered the lower half of his face.

A large set of powder white skeleton teeth decorated the bandana in replacement of the helmet’s now missing jaw guard, but Lee didn’t miss that he was being glared at by the deep set, dark eyes of a young Asian man who could barely be old enough to seriously order a beer.

For half a moment Lee tried to not let that distract him, and instead focused on placing the image covering half his face with any local gang symbols, though none came directly to mind.

Lee watched the boy crept to his feet, noticeably wary since Lee had not done anything yet. As far as he knew, Lee was some pedestrian trying to play hero. But, Lee knew he had only so much time before the other attackers came looking for their missing accomplice. And while he preferred not to start a fight, he knew he had to at least stop this one’s assault on the crowd. Even now, in the distance, police sirens were becoming a background chorus to the growls and cries echoing in the air, and smoke had taken over any space no longer occupied by a frightened festival goer. He wanted answers, and this boy had them.

Deciding to take his chances, the boy suddenly turned and grabbed his fallen vehicle in an attempt to get away. Lee had been ready to make his next move since his feet once again touched the ground. He darted forward to quickly close the distance between them, reaching out to grab the boy’s jacket and pull him back before he could even lift a leg over the seat.

“Xia che wo!” The boy snarled in Lee’s native language, and emphasized his anger as he jerked his shoulders back and forth like a caged animal. The jacket fell back, but Lee was familiar with this trick. He slid a foot forward in between the man’s legs to steady himself, quickly spun around once, twisting the jacket to pull the man’s arms back, keeping them stuck tight in the sleeves.

“Hey!” The guy yelled as he tried to turn around and see what Lee was doing. He grunted and lunged forward to free his arms, but Lee held on tight.

Lee spun the leather jacket once more before swiping at the biker’s legs, causing him to topple awkwardly to the ground beside his fallen bike.

Lee quickly placed a knee on his back as the struggling boy kissed cement, and pulled his arms behind his back. “You are under arrest for public-”

“Lee, get down!”

He didn’t hesitate. He crouched down low, his face nearly buried against the bandana’s large knot tied behind the man’s neck, and immediately heard the sharp whistle of something heavy fly past his head.

When he looked back up he saw another motorcycle speeding fast to his right, making a wide circle indicating the rider was planning on coming back around. Most likely for another swing.

Even as he tried to refocus on this new addition to the situation, Lee shook his head, annoyed with himself, and let out a frustrated growl. He hadn’t even heard the bike heading towards him, and that was unlike him to not notice something like that.

But, Carter had seen it.  

“Carter,” Lee breathed out in relief when he saw his partner yell out his name again and saw him running towards him, his gun held low but most definitely in control and at the ready.

Lee was about to call out his name back, but it was the boy’s turn to take advantage of Lee’s distraction. He jerked an elbow up and caught Lee in the side, just below his ribs, where he was crouched low enough for him to reach. It hurt, and Lee would have been able to shake it off if he had been ready for it. But he wasn’t, and it was enough to get him to fall onto the side in pain and surprise. It was also enough for the boy to roll himself onto his feet to stand, but not before Lee gave one last tug to keep the boy grounded.

It was a move that unfortunately proved to be fruitless. With a quick jerk the boy freed himself from the jacket and dashed towards the second motorist who was only a couple of meters away. He slid onto the back of the bike and had barely wrapped his arms around the driver before they were speeding off into the swirling white ether.

“Freeze or I’ll shoot!” He heard Carter yell. He was closer, but not close enough. Lee knew without even looking at his partner that he wouldn’t take the shot. The smoke bombs had created a fog with such low visibility that, if Carter were to miss it would mean risking the possibility of hitting a fleeing or hidden civilian. While neither cop wanted the bikers to get away, neither would take the chance of hurting someone innocent in the fray to stop them.  

Lee heard Carter run towards him and call his name breathlessly again as he slid to the ground beside him. Wincing, Lee struggled to quickly sit up on his own. He hated looking weak, especially in front of Carter, but stopped when he saw how much worry and fear was in his lover’s eyes.

They both did a silent inventory of each other’s condition, checking for injuries they hadn’t noticed initially. Lee was relieved to see there wasn’t anything wrong with Carter that he could tell at least.

“Are you alright?” Carter asked as he slid his arm around Lee’s shoulders to help him sit up.

Lee groaned as he moved but nodded. “I am fine.” He leant heavily against Carter’s chest, his side throbbing, and asked, “Derrick? And Didi?” He breathed in Carter’s scent, mostly hidden under a thick layer of dusty smoke, but it was enough to let his fear for Carter’s safety slide off his chest. For a moment he wondered if anyone would see them embracing, but the pavilion was mostly empty now,

“Both are good,” Carter answered and rested his chin on top of Lee’s head, his arm still tight around his body. “Gerald too, in case you were wondering.”

Lee didn’t miss the sarcasm. “Of course,” he answered slowly.

After he scoffed, Carter said, “Didi took off with them to get away from the crowd, but I ran back in looking for you.” He gave Lee a small squeeze. “I’m going to have to put a bell on you in the future, man. I thought you were right behind us. When everything started happening…” He trailed off, leftover worry evident in his voice.

“I looked for you as well,” Lee said and coughed a bit. The smoke in his lungs was catching up with him. “But when I saw the motorist I had to take the chance to stop him.”

“We need to get you out of here,” Carter said and began to help Lee stand, coughing as well.

Carter looked over the jacket in Lee’s hands. “Well, at least we might have some clue as to who the hell these guys are.” He slid an arm around Lee’s waist to help him walk, but Lee shook his head and stepped aside. The sirens were getting louder, and Lee knew that meant this place would be filled with emergency personal within minutes. The last thing he wanted were people asking questions they weren’t ready to answer.

Carter pressed his lips tightly together when Lee moved, but said nothing. Lee could move on his own, barely, and he knew it would look suspicious if he was glued to his partner’s side when he didn’t have to be. He didn’t like it, but it was what they had to do.

For now.

“I didn’t get a good look at the guy so that you did will help too.” Carter wrapped his arm around his face and began walking towards where the smoke seemed to be thinning. “This smoke is a bitch.”

Following, for a moment Lee almost told Carter that the man had been Chinese, but for some reason he kept his mouth shut. Instead he muttered, “Possibly.” It wasn’t a lie, exactly, he told himself. He would explain later, he was sure.

He looked at the jacket in his hands and noticed something about the inside fabric. Holding it open he saw a Chinese character had been embroidered into the jacket, only seen from the inside.  

The zodiac symbol for a horse.

Carter coughed loudly and rubbed at his eyes, not knowing what Lee had seen. “Smoke bombs at a festival. That some kinda weird, traditional Chinese prank or something?”

“No,” Lee answered, his mind swirling with his own thoughts as he closed the jacket. “This is very unusual.” He looked down at the jacket in his hands once more and continued to walk.


End file.
